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when are they lighting the tree at rockefeller center

The Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree lighting ceremony for the 2026 holiday season is scheduled for Wednesday, December 2, 2026.

Quick Scoop

  • The famous Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree will be lit in a big primetime ceremony on December 2, 2026.
  • The event is an hours-long live show with performances and the official countdown to turning on the more than 50,000 LED lights on the tree.
  • After the ceremony night, the tree is typically lit daily from early morning until around midnight through early January, with extended hours on Christmas Eve and shorter hours on New Year’s Eve.

Key Details

  • Date of lighting: December 2, 2026.
  • Where: Rockefeller Center Plaza, Midtown Manhattan, New York City.
  • What to expect:
    • Large crowds and heavy security in and around the plaza.
* A televised concert-style show leading up to the moment the tree lights up.

Visiting After the Ceremony

  • The tree usually stays up and lit from early December through mid‑January , so you can still see it if you miss the actual lighting night.
  • On Christmas Eve , the tree is lit 24 hours; on New Year’s Eve , lights generally go off earlier in the evening (around 9 p.m.).

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.